Here is a map from Answers.com of "Eastern Prussia" in 14th century, notice the region names and if you scroll down you will see the Soviet/Russian renamed all the cities, so as to take a historical precedence away from the older Germanic region.

Headlines from Arab Press: TishreenTishreen (SYRIA): Assad: American Aggression on Syria Confirms Danger of U.S. Presence in Region – Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told a conference of Arab parliaments in Damascus Sunday that the latest U.S. aggression on Syria constitutes a constant source of threat to Iraq's neighbors and a source of instability to the region. He added that the Iraq-U.S. security accord is aimed at turning Iraq into a base to strike at neighboring countries and called for ending the occupation of Iraq as soon as possible to ensure Iraq's independence and the region's stability.

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I doubt Assad has the regions stability in mind, he wants to be able to influence Iraq, with Al-Quida if necessary.

The order of 36 F-16 Fighting Falcons, 24 AT-6B Light Attack Aircraft Trainers and a variety of attack and reconnaissance helicopters will go toward plans to develop 10 air force bases with 6,000 crewmen by 2011.

Here is another interesting snippet by Iraq's emerging military:

Samer Abid al-Wahaab, a Defense Ministry spokesman, said at the time that air power was integral to Iraq's security objectives.

"Iraq faces multiple challenges: We need to control our open borders and defend against external aggression, while our counterparts must maintain internal security and overall law and order," he said.